Fire erupts at oil depot in St. Petersburg

A fire burning at an oil depot in St. Petersburg has been extinguished, the Russian Emergency Ministry said on Telegram, after dozens of firefighters were called to the scene.

Videos from the area posted on social media showed a large plume of black smoke rising as explosions rang out.

The fire was first reported at 10:59 a.m. local time, Russia’s Ministry of Emergency Situations said. A hangar of 80 by 10 meters (262 by 33 feet) was reported up in flames the ministry said.

The effort to put out the fire, which burned an area of about 800 square meters (8,600 square feet), involved about 100 people.

Russian online news outlet Fontanka reported the fire was at the Ruchi oil depot.

The cause of the incident is not yet known. No casualties have been reported so far.

Russian infrastructure such as oil depots have previously been targeted over its invasion of Ukraine.